One of the more surprising things about Grenada is that both its most famous flora (the nutmeg tree) and its most famous fauna (the mona monkey) are relatively recent arrivals on the island. French and English colonists brought nutmeg to the island from the Moluccan Islands of Indonesia during the 18th century (the exact details are disputed). The gregarious mona monkey (
Cercopithecus mona) showed up around the same time, brought over from Africa during the height of the slave trade. Fortunately, slavery has been consigned to history, but as I witnessed yesterday during a trip into the
Grand Etang National Park, in the island's midsection, the little mona is alive and well. Several troupes of monas bounce through the dense Grenadian forest these days, and a few — accustomed to handouts from visitors — are all too happy to loiter in public places.
The two photogenic guys you see here weren't at all put off by my shameless gawking — that is, until they realized there was no easy meal to be had, when they promptly turned and sauntered off into the jungle. Up until quite recently, these remarkable animals were hunted and eaten, almost to the brink of eradication. But locals, perhaps realizing their tourist appeal, have (by all accounts) ceased that practice. We're sure happy about that, and so, we suspect, are the monkeys.
Grenada's African Expats: The Mona Monkey
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One of the more surprising things about Grenada is that both its most famous flora (the nutmeg tree) and its most famous fauna (the mona monkey) are relatively recent arrivals on the island. French and English colonists brought nutmeg to the island from the Moluccan Islands of Indonesia during the 18th century (the exact details are disputed). The gregarious mona monkey (Cercopithecus mona) showed up around the same time, brought over from Africa during the height of the slave trade. Fortunately, slavery has been consigned to history, but as I witnessed yesterday during a trip into the Grand Etang National Park, in the island's midsection, the little mona is alive and well. Several troupes of monas bounce through the dense Grenadian forest these days, and a few — accustomed to handouts from visitors — are all too happy to loiter in public places. 
The two photogenic guys you see here weren't at all put off by my shameless gawking — that is, until they realized there was no easy meal to be had, when they promptly turned and sauntered off into the jungle. Up until quite recently, these remarkable animals were hunted and eaten, almost to the brink of eradication. But locals, perhaps realizing their tourist appeal, have (by all accounts) ceased that practice. We're sure happy about that, and so, we suspect, are the monkeys.
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